I hope you’ve had a wonderful week. I spent last week on the road speaking at two different events and have found myself needing some recovery time (hence the lack of a newsletter last Saturday when I got home).
This week’s photo to clear your mind and bring you a moment of peace is from newsletter subscriber and photographer Amy Leach (thanks, Amy!):
Now on to the lesson of the week, courtesy of my time at Camp Redwood, a small but powerful community of non-profit and social impact founders.
A Camp Redwood Speaker on People Problems
“People problems don’t age like wine… they age like milk.”
– An experienced exec speaking to a room full of founders
Why People Problems Get Worse With Time
When you build a team, culture is everything. Nothing destroys culture like individuals who consistently behave out of alignment with the organization’s values and operating principles.
Whether you have a team or are thinking about it in the future, you’ve probably seen the kinds of people problems we’re referring to here:
- Someone who misses deadlines or fails to communicate about changes in plans
- Someone who gossips or shares criticism behind people’s backs, but never shares their feedback directly
- Someone who has soured on the mission, leadership, or culture of an organization, but refuses to take back their agency and find a new job
- Someone who simply doesn’t have the knowledge, talent, or motivation to perform at the standard of excellence of the organization (which results in everyone else feeling less motivated too)
I simultaneously believe that 1) as entrepreneurs, we have a responsibility to give our people every chance to succeed and 2) that if a person is not a fit for our organization, we have to move them out of their role. If we lack 1) we won’t find out what people are capable of. If we lack 2) we’ll end up with a degrading culture and standard of excellence.
When you have a people problem, it doesn’t age like wine, which gets better with time. It ages like milk, which sours and becomes worse with time.
Coaching Questions to Apply it to Your Life
What people problems exist within your team? Which of those problems have you been avoiding? What do you already know you need to do, even if it’s painful?
Wishing you a wonderful weekend full of joy, connection, and restoration.
Much love and respect,
Barrett
P.S.: Did you catch this week’s Good Work episode with Kieran Snyder, founder of Textio (AI for building equitable, high-performing teams) and Nerd Processor (nerdy, data-driven deep dives on creating better workplaces)?